Respectfully, I am asking you to give my husband and me permission to enter Holland for a short stay. My husband, Stefan Deutsch born on April 1,1882 in Breslau, is a merchant and, until a short while ago, was the owner of a third generation grain business.

My name is Friederike Deutsch, nee Hahn. I was born on December 3, 1885 in Warsaw. Both of us are German citizens and members of the Jewish community. We are forced to leave Germany since my husband has been incarcerated in a concentration camp since November 10, 1938.

Our son, Martin Deutsch, who is in excellent financial standing, and lives in Chattanooga, Tennessee in America, has sent us an affidavit. We have asked the American Consul in Berlin to issue us a visa as soon as possible. Since this will take some time and since we are forced to leave, I am herewith asking you to give us the permission to come to Holland until we get our visa for America.

Please send me your permission and also the border papers to my address. Many thanks in advance for your cooperation.

Sincerely yours,
Frieda Deutsch

Margot and Kurt hid Jewish friends in their apartment in Berlin. After being warned of Nazi surveillance, they left for America via Holland on November 18 with a visa and affidavit from Kurt’s brother, Joachim Prinz, a rabbi in New York.

Comment on the wording and tone of Frieda’s letter. What is significant about Frieda saying that she and Stefan are German citizens in line 8? [They probably still considered themselves Germans.]